COURSE SYLLABUS
Internship in Economics, 15 credits
Internship in Economics, 15 högskolepoäng
Course Syllabus for students Autumn 2020
Course Code: JECN10
Confirmed by: Director of Education Apr 9, 2019
Valid From: Jan 7, 2020
Version: 1
Education Cycle: First-cycle level
Disciplinary domain: Social sciences (75%) and natural sciences (25%)
Subject group: NA1
Specialised in: G2F
Main field of study: Economics

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILO)

The objective of the internship in economics is to give the student experience in applying his/her theoretical knowledge in practical work concerning economics, thereby allowing the student to further develop skills in applying the theoretical approaches which have been treated in the various courses of the programme.

On completion of the course the students will be able to:

Knowledge and understanding

1. Explain and discuss the applicability of economic methodology and theories in an organization.

Skills and abilities

2. Identify, collect, and combine a theoretical framework suitable to analyze a predefined topic of study in economics associated with the environment in which the student is performing his or her internship.
3. Thoroughly analyze a predefined topic of study in economics by means of active organization participation and theoretical reflection
4. Perform tasks within given time frames.
5. Independently write an academic report, which combines theory and experience from practice and derives useful conclusions for theory and/or practice.

Judgement and approach

6. Identify, analyze and critically discuss practical and theoretical implications associated with the internship with the aim to contribute in terms of knowledge in the field of economics.

Contents

If suitable to their study profile and course portfolio, programme students with a major in Economics are offered the possibility to do an internship in a business organization. For a 15 credit internship, the minimum time spent with an organization is equivalent to 10 weeks’ full time. Students themselves take the initiative to investigate their opportunity to take an internship course within the program and need to verify that the course fits in their study plan with a student counselor. Students arrange their own internship based on their wishes and possibilities. The goal is that the practice should be stimulating, rewarding and challenging.

The purpose of the internship course is for students to have the opportunity to translate prior learning and experience in an applied setting at a business. The course also aims to develop the students’ ability to work both independently and in collaboration with others. The aim of the internship course is to facilitate increased in-depth learning within a predefined field of Economics. The internship position should offer an exclusive opportunity to study a topic in Economics. By applying theoretical knowledge to practical experiences, the internship course provides a unique opportunity to reflect on the variations between theory and practice and the value of combining them to gain valuable knowledge and skills for a career in economics.

Students must be enrolled in the internship course before they can start the internship. Before a student can be enrolled in the internship course, the internship position and the topic of study must be approved by the course examiner and study counselor.

The student is obliged to write an academic report in order to get academic credits for the course.

Based on a job description, the traineeship and the topic for report writing must be approved in advance by the course examiner. The objective with the traineeship is to participate in a project where academic knowledge can be applied in order to achieve scholarly attainments in economics.

Type of instruction

Practical work under academic supervision. Writing of an academic report about a research oriented project related to the internship under academic supervision. Relevant literature is recommended. To fulfill the academic requirements of the internship, each student should submit the following reports:

Field note reflections: During the time of the internship each student should take field notes
about specific things they observe or experience related to Economics (not limited to your chosen area and topic of internship study). Drawing on these field notes students should reflect on how practice mirrors what they have studied in previous courses. For the 15 credit internship, students should submit four (4) such reflections to their internship teacher during the internship.

Internship report: During and related to the internship, each student should write a report with the aim of analyzing and generating new insights related to a predefined topic in the area of economics. To facilitate a relevant frame of reference and thorough analyses, students should identify and study research-based literature. Discussion about literature should be held with the teacher before starting the internship.

The report should be well structured and fulfil the scientific standards required by JIBS. The report should be between 15 and 20 pages (excluding references and appendix) and contain the following:
1) Introduction that presents the topic and questions in focus during your internship.
2) A summary of previous and relevant research (based on the literature requirements)
3) Presentation of observations/experiences/discussions (etc) in practice combined with critical discussion and analyses (including references to previous research).
4) Conclusions and recommendations to theory and practice.
5) List of references.
6) Appendix 1: Description of the internship organization
7) Appendix 2: Description of the work conducted in the organization

Ex-ante check-list for students interested in doing an internship:
1. Meet with study counsellor to see if you are eligible for doing an internship course.
2. Identify and contact an organization suitable for your internship.
3. Get permission from the company to do an internship in the organization.
4. Get the organization to appoint an internship responsible and craft an internship work description.
5. Based on the type of organization and the work description – identify a topic that you wish to study
and gain increased knowledge about during the internship. Write 1 page specifying the background and problem description and preliminary purpose of your internship course report. (i.e. What area of economics and what specific topic in that area do you aim to go deeper into by means of the internship?)
6. Send the organization’s work description plus information of contact person, and your topic
description to the course examiner.
7. If your internship position and topic is accepted – meet with the assigned teacher to discuss the topic and preliminary literature before you leave for the internship.

The teaching is conducted in English.

Prerequisites

General entry requirements and 60 credits in Economics (or the equivalent).

Examination and grades

The course is graded Fail (U) or Pass (G).

The course is examined through a written report in economics, done individually. The assignment should be well structured and fulfill the scientific standards required by JIBS.

The ILOs (1-6) of the course are examined through the internship report.

Registration of examination:
Name of the TestValueGrading
Written report115 creditsU/G
1 Determines the final grade of the course, which is issued only when all course units have been passed.

Course evaluation

It is the responsibility of the examiner to ensure that each course is evaluated. At the outset of the course, evaluators must be identified (elected) among the students. The course evaluation is carried out continuously as well as at the end of the course. On the completion of the course the course evaluators and course examiner discuss the course evaluation and possible improvements. A summary report is created and archived. The reports are followed up by program directors and discussed in program groups and with relevant others (depending on issue e.g. Associate Dean of Education, Associate Dean of faculty, Director of PhD Candidates, Dean and Director of Studies). The next time the course runs, students should be informed of any measures taken to improve the course based on the previous course evaluation.

Other information

Preliminary literature should be suggested by the student and discussed with the internship teacher before the student leaves for the internship. The literature applied should be relevant for the internship focus.

The credits from this course can only be used as elective credits and cannot be included in the major. For the degree requirement, a student can have a maximum of 15 credits within internship courses.

The internship report cannot replace the writing of a thesis, but it can be used as a basis for such a thesis.

Academic integrity
JIBS students are expected to maintain a strong academic integrity. This implies to behave within the boundaries of academic rules and expectations relating to all types of teaching and examination. Copying someone else’s work is a particularly serious offence and can lead to disciplinary action. When you copy someone else’s work, you are plagiarizing. You must not copy sections of work (such as paragraphs, diagrams, tables and words) from any other person, including another student or any other author. Cutting and pasting is a clear example of plagiarism. There is a workshop and online resources to assist you in not plagiarizing called the Interactive Anti-Plagiarism Guide. Other forms of breaking academic integrity include (but are not limited to) adding your name to a project you did not work on (or allowing someone to add their name), cheating on an examination, helping other students to cheat and submitting other students work as your own, and using non-allowed electronic equipment during an examination. All of these make you liable to disciplinary action.

Course literature

Literature

Literature of relevance to the project

Preliminary literature should be suggested by the student and discussed with the internship teacher before the student leaves for the internship. The literature applied should be relevant for the internship focus.